The Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery may be closed to visitors for the time being, but the summer art programs are moving forward with a few new changes to keep kids engaged with both art and their community over the next few months.
The Summer Art & Culture Programs will begin on June 29 and run weekly until Aug. 28, featuring a number of themed classes for all ages from toddler to teen.
Education coordinator Christy Schweiger is excited to be able to offer summer camps this year amid all of the changes that have followed COVID-19 to Moose Jaw, and she shared some of the ways that this year’s programs will be a little different.
The biggest change is the most obvious: instruction is moving to a virtual space, as organizers want to provide programming that abides by the no-contact guidelines still in place.
Instead of the usual in-person classes, participants will get one hour of live video instruction each day of the week-long program, paired with some projects to round out the activities.
Some instructors are also working on creating an outside component to each program, where participants will be encouraged to get outside and interact with monuments or installations in the community on self-guided “field trips.”
“It could be a scavenger hunt, or looking at different monuments or architecture in the community and connecting that into the art classes for that week,” said Schweiger. “There’s some really cool little treasures in our community, where maybe we’ll look at nature or do some drawing or painting, along that line.”
Each program will provide a creative kit full of necessary materials for the class, and parents will know more about how and where to pick up those kits closer to the date of the program.
Another change, said Schweiger, is that the registration fee for programs is actually less this year and can only be paid online as the MJMAG staff are working largely from home.
Otherwise, the summer art programs will once again offer a fun, hands-on art experience meant to keep kids connected with their creativity throughout the summer.
“We want to support our community and support families and youth, and also encourage creativity and art in our programs,” said Schweiger. “We’re hoping to show some of the artwork on our community art page we have on our website, as the end of each week too.”
A number of instructors are returning this year, including Charles Buchanan for a teen program about creating comics and graphic novels, 10-year summer program veteran Cora Melanson, and last year’s summer student Bryson Quilliams who is running an art-mashup program exploring different mediums together.
This year’s themes include a number of interesting topics, such as space, community heroes, Disney, and animals, among others.
Age categories have also shifted slightly this year, which Schweiger explained is to accommodate a family scenario where several children of different ages are watching the same program at the same time.
The focus has largely been on making sure the online programming is as accessible as possible, said Schweiger, by lowering fees and choosing free-to-use Zoom as the delivery platform.
The MJMAG is also looking into partnering with daycares in the city to provide the programs to children who may not have financial or technological access on their own, and Schweiger encourages families to think about the program as flexible in terms of where kids can take part.
“The beauty of this program is that if you’re at the lake, on a farm, or in Ontario or something, you can still access it. As long as you have an internet connection, you can take part in our program,” said Schweiger.
A schedule for the upcoming summer kids programs launched on June 2, which is when registration opened to families interested in joining any of the program weeks.
To find more information on programming, as well as to register and pay fees, visit the MJMAG website.
For any questions about joining the summer kids programs this year, or to inquire about financially sponsored spots for low-income participants, email Christy Schweiger at educator.mjmag@sasktel.net.
